Hampton Roads 1

Hampton Roads 2

Hampton Roads 3

Hampton Roads 4

Hampton Roads

Monitor vs. Merrimack, Battle of the Ironclads

March 8 - 9, 1862

Hampton Roads, Virginia

On March 8, 1862, from her berth at Norfolk, the Confederate ironclad Virginia steamed into Hampton Roads where she sank Cumberland and ran Congress aground. On March 9, the Union ironclad Monitor having fortuitously arrived to do battle, initiated the first engagement of ironclads in history. The two ships fought each other to a standstill, but Virginia retired.